That night, Leon tossed and turned. He thought of selling the gunpowder formula—Im had seemed interested—but it was too weak to be valuable. He thought of the prehistoric stone axe from the cave, but who would buy an old rock? He thought of smuggling salt, but Eldrin's warnings about the danger of meddling in such a profitable industry echoed in his mind.
Then, a idea struck. Salt. He couldn't smuggle it, but he could improve it.
Leon had been making pure salt for his family for years, using charcoal to filter impurities— a trick Eldrin had taught him. The result was snow-white, far cleaner than the coarse salt most people used. If he could sell the method to Im, maybe it would cover the tuition.
The next morning, Leon skipped the manor, staying home to refine salt. He ground coarse salt into powder, mixed it with water, and filtered the solution through layers of charcoal and linen. The result was a small pile of pure, white crystals. He wrote down the steps on paper, adding sketches, then packed the salt and notes into his basket.
On the third day, he returned to the manor, breakfast in hand. Dahlia frowned. "Where were you yesterday? We had no good food. Did you give up?"
"Not quite," Leon said, setting the basket down. He turned to Im. "I don't have a hundred gold coins. But I have something else— a way to make pure snow salt, from any salt source. Worth enough for tuition?"
Im's eyes narrowed. "Snow salt is rare. It comes only from clean salt lakes."
"Not anymore," Leon said, pulling out the paper package of salt. He handed Im a crystal, then unfolded his notes. "Charcoal absorbs impurities. Filter the saltwater through it, boil it down, and you get this. It's simple, cheap, and scalable."
Im tasted the salt, his expression softening into admiration. "Clever. Very clever. With this, the lord could turn his salt mines into a fortune. Your master was wise to keep this secret."
"He said it was too dangerous to share," Leon lied.
Im studied the sketches, then looked up. "Let's test it. If it works, I'll waive your tuition for ten years. Once you're a proper mage apprentice, you'll assist me with potions and experiments to cover the cost of magical materials."
Dahlia and Flower cheered, but Leon's heart was calm, steady with relief. He'd done it— not with gold, but with knowledge, just as Eldrin had taught him.
They spent the rest of the day testing the method in the manor's courtyard. Leon supervised as they mixed saltwater, layered charcoal in a wooden frame, and poured the liquid through. By evening, they had a small bowl of pure snow salt, identical to Leon's sample.
Im clapped him on the shoulder. "Welcome to my class, Leon. Let's start with the basics—true magic, not smoke and bangs."